Sindh Universities Laws Amendment Act 2013

KU teachers protest over new law
Karachi, Sep 05: The Karachi University Teachers' Society has
decided to suspend all educational activities on Thursday on the KU
campus in protest against the passage of the Sindh Universities Laws
(Amendment) Act, 2013. The decision to observe a strike was taken at the
Kuts' general body meeting held on Wednesday morning, which was later
announced at a press conference at the Staff Club.

The Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff
Association (Fpuasa) had earlier given 15 days to the government to
amend certain clauses seen by Fpuasa as an attempt to take away the
autonomous status of universities. Speaking at the press briefing, Kuts
president Dr Mutahir Ahmed deplored that the government supporting the
provincial autonomy had usurped the autonomy of universities and had
used words such as 'control' for managing university affairs in the
'controversial' law.

The aim of calling a Kuts general body meeting, he said, was to
inform teachers about the consensus reached at the gathering of Fpuasa
and to take them into confidence.

"It was also decided at the Fpuasa meeting that all universities were
free to decide their own course of action on the law so the government
was forced to review it," he said in reply to a question.

All university teachers, he said, were on the same page and there
were no differences of opinion over the 'controversial clauses' of the
law.

He also clarified that the issue of university admission policy was
also discussed at the Fpuasa meeting and it was decided that the policy
would be decided by the academic council of respective universities.

The society, he said, would challenge the law if negotiations with the government remained inconclusive.

"A meeting of our executive body would be held tomorrow whereas the
six-member committee set up at the Fpuasa meeting would present its
recommendations on the bill on Friday," he said, adding that Kuts was
trying to meet the chief minister on the issue.

In reply to another question, he said classes missed on Thursday on account of the strike would be rescheduled next week.

Reiterating the stance of university teachers, he said that the
teachers had strong reservations over the articles relating to transfer
of powers to make key appointments - which were a prerogative of the
university syndicate - to the government. The appointments included
those of registrar, controller of examination, chief accountant,
resident auditor, bursar and finance director.

He also called upon the government not to appoint retired people on administrative posts.

Two 'KU students' remanded in kidnapping for ransom bid case
Karachi: A young man and a woman, who claim to be students of the Karachi
University, were remanded in police custody on Wednesday on a charge of
attempting to kidnap a businessman for ransom.

The
investigation officer told the Anti-Terrorism Court-I that Faisal Iqbal
and Hina Siddiqui allegedly tried to abduct businessman Muhammad Azmat
and demanded Rs500,000 in ransom near the mausoleum of the Quaid-e-Azam
on Tuesday.

However, Azmat resisted and managed to escape
to safety. He lodged an FIR with the Brigade police, saying that the
suspects had established contact with him by phone.

The police arrested both the suspects on the same day. Iqbal and Siddiqui accused each other of planning the kidnap bid.

As
the ATC-I remanded the two in police custody, Special Public Prosecutor
Abdul Maroof requested judge Nadeem Raza Baloch to order that Siddiqui
be kept at a women's police station and interrogated by policewomen.

The
prosecutor contended that the Anti-Terrorism Act empowered the
presiding officer to pass such orders in case the suspect was a woman.

The
court granted the plea and directed the investigation officer to keep
Siddiqui detained at the women's police station concerned. The next
hearing is scheduled for September 7. The news

KU students robbed in bus hold-up
Karachi: In a rare incident of campus bus hold-up in
the metropolis, nearly half a dozen armed robbers on Tuesday morning got
onto the moving vehicle of Karachi University in Orangi and deprived
students of their cash and belongings at gunpoint, police and campus
sources said.

They added that the university bus with around 50 students on board
was on its way from Qasba to the campus when some five men got onto it
near the Banaras bridge where the vehicle had slowed down due to
potholes in the road.

Only three of the students, most of whom were carrying their semester
fees, were boys, said KU students' adviser Prof Dr Ansar Rizvi.

The armed men held them hostage at gunpoint and started snatching
cellular phones, cash and even documents from them, according to the
students.

The adviser quoted the victims as saying that the robbers collected
their mobile phones, handbags, money, books, university and national
identity cards, USBs and an MP3 player before fleeing.

Shortly after the incident, the students staged a protest
demonstration by making a human chain near Abdullah College on main
Manghopir Road.

As a result, traffic remained suspended on the main road from 8.15am to 9.30am.

Dr Rizvi said that 50 students were on the bus when the incident took
place. Of them, 15 were deprived of their personal belongings.

"There were only three boys on the bus at that time. With the
exception of two students who went back home, all the victims reported
the incident to the campus officials and lodged their complaints with
the university authorities," he said.

As many of the students were carrying fees for the current semester,
the university authorities had decided not to charge fees from them, he
said.

"The university administration is shocked over the incident. We have never heard of such an incident before," Dr Rizvi said.

While there was a suggestion to change the route of university buses
that passed through such areas after holding a discussion with students,
the university for the time being decided to use vehicles whose door
could be locked in trouble-hit areas, he said.

KU semester fee schedule
Karachi: The semester and examination fee can be deposited without any late fee up
to October 31.This was announced by an official of the University of
Karachi (KU) on Monday.With a late fee of Rs500 the Semester and
Examination fee can be deposited from November 1 to 9. The news